The GENES Blog (GEnealogy News and EventS): Top stories concerning ancestral research in Britain, Ireland, and their diasporas, from Irish born Scottish based professional family historian, author and tutor Chris Paton. Feel free to quote from this blog, but please credit The GENES Blog if you do so. To contact me please email chrismpaton @ outlook.com.

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Thursday, 20 March 2014

An individual's name is personal data

Just read about an interesting case from the UK Court of Appeal last month concerning whether or not a person's name alone can be classified as personal data under the Data Protection Act, or whether further biographical information is needed for it to be so classified.

The Court has ruled that a person's name does constitute personal data under the Act, unless it is so common that further detail is needed to identify an individual - and further that personal data is information that relates to a living individual who can be identified, regardless of whether they can be traced or contacted.

(I picked this up on Twitter earlier and favourited the page - apologies to whoever the original tweeter was, I can't now find your name!)

Chris

Time to find your inner Irish...! All the best online Irish genealogy resources can be found through my book Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet - in print and ebook formats. "Very useful, makes me wish I was Irish!" - Saint Patrick, patron saint.